Scissors sharpener



I 1942. H. J. RAlNs 7 2,304,420

SC ISSORS SHARPENER Fi led Jan. 21, 1941 k Ham? J. EA INS Patented Dec. 8, 1942 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,304,420 SCISSORS SHARPENER Howell J. Rains, Mansfield, La. 1 Application January 21, 1941, Serial No. 375,206

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a scissors sharpener. The invention embodies certain improvements in that type of scissors sharpener described in my United States Patent for Scissors sharpener issued December 9, 1941, Patent No. 2,265,577, of which the present application is a continuation in part.

An object of the invention is toprovide a hand tool of the character described constructed for use in sharpening the blades of scissors, although the tool may be used for sharpening any type of blade having a beveled edge.

Another object of the invention is to provide a tool of the character described embodying a vise for gripping the blade to be sharpened and an adjustable guide, or support, for the Whetstone or other stone which may be accurately adjusted into position such that the grinding or abrading surface of the stone will be at an angle corresponding exactly to the bevel of the blade to be sharpened and which may be turned in its supporting saddle, or bracket, so as to accommodate it to scissors having blades of diiferent widths and difierent bevels.

The invention also embodies means for accomplishing the easy and exact adjustment of the support for the stone or file or other grinding implement to be used in sharpening the blade.

When the blade is inserted into the vise it must be adjusted lengthwise until the beveled portion to be operated on is in exact parallel relation with the support for the grinding implement.

The tool is provided with means for making an indicating mark on the blade when so adjusted and is also provided with a pointer which will be opposite said mark when the same is formed so that when the blade is to be again sharpened, it may be quickly and accurately located in the vise with the pointer opposite the mark which has been so made on the blade.

When the blade is properly adjusted in the vise and secured against movement therein the support for the grinding implement must then be adjusted so that when the grinding implement is resting on said support its grinding face in contact with the beveled portion of the blade will be inclined so as to exactly fit said beveled portion to accomplish a uniform grinding action throughout the beveled area of the blade. For

adjusting the support an adjusting screw is provlded with a scale so that when the support is adjusted for a particular blade the scale can be noted and when said blade is again to be sharpened the adjustment of the saddle or bracket can be quickly'and accurately made.

It is another object of the invention to provide a scissors sharpener of the character described which may be quickly adjusted so as to enable the user to quickly and easily apply the grinding implement or stone to a blade of any particular width or bevel without danger of injury to the blade and may sharpen the cutting edge from end to end thereof with little effort or attention.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a scissors sharpener of the character described having a special form of vise adapted to positively prevent movement of the blade, relative thereto, when the blade is clamped in the vise and the scissors and tool are grasped by the user during the sharpening operation.

With the above and other objects in view the invention has particular relation to certain novel features of construction, operation and arrangement of parts, an example of which is given in this specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein-- Figure 1 shows a front elevation of the tool.

Figure 2 shows an end elevation.

Figure 3 shows a plan View.

Figure 4 shows a rear elevation.

Figure 5 shows an enlarged, fragmentary, front elevational view.

Figure 6 shows a plan View of the support for the grinding implement showing a tubular retainer partly withdrawn therefrom, and

Figure 7 shows a plan view of said retainer showing the chart, normally contained therein, partly withdrawn therefrom.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing wherein like numerals of reference designate the same parts in each of the figures the numeral I designates a frame of a general arcuate shape having an internally tapped bearing 2 at one end and whose other end is widened and formed with an arcuate notch 3 with the fixed clamp jaw 4 and blade support 4a one on each side of said notch.

Projecting forwardly from the widened end of the frame and arranged parallel are ears 5, 5a. Between these ears there is a U-shaped jaw member 6, theupper end of one of whose side arms is provided with the movable clamp jaw 1. The member 6 has end pintles 8, 8 which rotate in suitable bearings as 9 in the ears 5, 5a. A clamp screw Ill is threaded through the frame I and surrounding its forward end there is a coil spring Illa one end of which bears against the lower end of the U-shaped member 6.

The blade to be sharpened may be inserted between the vise law 4 and the clamp jaw l as indicated in dotted lines in Figure 1. Said blade resting on the upper margins of the ears 5, a and against the support 4a, as shown in Figure l and the clamp screw It may then be screwed inwardly to cause the jaws, forming the vise, to securely grip the blade. In case the blade is short and does not reach across so as to rest on the ear 5a its end may be supported on an inwardly movable stop, or support, ll carried by the blade support la.

With the blade clamped in the position shown in Figure 1 and also shown in Figure 4 the tool and the shank or handle of the other blade may be grasped by the user and said shank or handle will be seated in aligned notches l2, 12a in the frame I so that the blade being operated .on, or shapened, will be firmly held against any movement whatever in the frame during the sharpening operation.

On the frame I there are the upwardly extended spaced ears [3, l3 and one end of a forwardly extended arm I4 is pivot-ally mounted between these ears.

Secured to the free end of this arm Hi there is an arcuate bracket, or saddle, I5 in which there is mounted a cylindrical support It. This support [:6 is preferably formed of some suitable metal. As shown in Figure 2 one margin of the saddle It has a longitudinal inside bead l1 and the support l6 has five external longitudinal grooves I8 extending from one end thereof and terminating near the other end thereof and spaced a uniform distance apart therearound thus providing supporting faces between them.

Said faces being indicated by the characters 0,

1, 2, 3 and 4, to designate the corresponding bearing faces 19, 20, 2|, 22 and 23, corresponding designating characters being shown in the first or left column of characters on the chart 24 which is retained within the transparent retainer 25 and this retaineris normally retained within the support [6 which is tubular.

' The support may, accordingly, be readily removed from the saddle l5 by pulling it out endwise and appropriately turned to bring the corresponding bearing face thereof into position for use and reinserted into the saddle with the bead ll in the corresponding grooves whereby the support will be held accurately against turning in the saddle. The faces [9, 2i}, 2!, 22 and 23; will be gradually worn down to fiat faces by the Whetstone or other grinding implement.

The tool illustrated in the drawing is adapted for use in sharpening five different types of scissors having different blade widths and possibly different bevels. There is a face on the support for each different type of scissors to be sharpened and when any particular scissors is clamped in the vise the support should be turned to bring the bearing face corresponding to that particular scissors into position to support the Whetstone. Before the blade is clamped in the vise it should be adjusted lengthwise until the beveled face on its edge, is in exact parallel relation with the corresponding bearing face of the support [6.

In use the stone, file, or other implement used for sharpening the blade will lie on the beveled edge of the blade and on the corresponding face of the support l6 and consequently said support should be adjusted so that said sharpening implement will lie at the same angle as the angle of the bevel as is indicated in dotted lines in Figure 2. This adjustment of the support [6 is accomplished by an adjusting screw 26 which is threaded through the tap bearing 2 and whose upper end engages the underside of the free end of the arm I l as shown in Figure 2. This adjusting screw 26 has a scale 21 on one side as shown.

When the blade has been adjusted to the proper position a mark should be made on said blade so that when it is again inserted into the sharpener and said mark is brought exactly opposite the pointer 28 the beveled edge of blade will be in exact parallel relation with the bearing face. In this manner the blade can be quickly adjusted in proper position in the vise.

For the purpose of making this mark on the zbladeabracket 29 has been provided. As shown this bracket is mounted to rotate on the transverse aligned spindles 39, 30 which extend inwardly from the side arms of the jaw member 5 as shown in Figure 5. This bracket 29 is upwardly arched and carries a pointed punch 3|. When the blade is adjusted to the desired position the bracket 29 may be moved so as to bring the punch 3| against the blade and by the required pressure the desired mark may -be made on the blade exactly opposite the pointer 28.

In sharpening the blades the Whetstone, :or other grinding implement will gradually wear the faces 19 to 23, inclusive, flat and .each face, as worn, will be in exact alignment with the bevel of the blade corresponding to said face. Therefore, each blade will have its own bearing face for the grinding implement which bearing face will be in exact alignment with the bevel .ofsaid blade.

On the chart 24 the second column of designating characters represents the different types of scissors to be sharpened. As above stated the sharpener illustrated in the drawing is adapted for use in sharpening five different types of scissors although the sharpener is not necessarily limited to that number. The designation characters in the third column shown on'the chart represents the elevation of the holder 16 as adjusted by the adjusting screw 26. For example, should type C scissors be placed in the vise to be sharpened the bearing face 19, indicated on the end of the holder by the numeral 1, should be used and the holder should be elevated by the adjusting screw 26 to the point 2 as shown on the scale '21, etc. I a

The drawing and description are illustrative merely while the broad principle of the invention will be defined by the appended claim.

What I claim is:

A blade sharpener comprising an arcuate frame having fixed clamp jaws at one end, a clamp jaw pivoted to said end of the .frame and arranged to cooperate with one of the fixed jaws to clamp a blade between them, a coil spring effective to hold said jaws in yieldable clamping relation with a blade between them, a clamp screw having a threaded connection withthe frame for varying the compression on said spring and for actuating thepivoted jaw into clamping relation with a blade between the jaws and for releasing the pivoted jaw from the blade, a forwardly extended arm pivoted to the frame, an arcuate saddle on the free end of the arm, a cylindrical support for a .sharpening implement on the saddle and adjustable thereon about the axis of the support and an adjusting screw having a threaded connection with the frame and engageable with the arm for adjusting said arm and support relative to the frame.

" Q E R NSL 

